Monday, August 07, 2006

Consider this a catch-all post covering all the little things that happen day in and day out, warranting a picture but not seeming quite enough for a whole blog post.

Despite the fact that Em looks extremely bored in this photo (note to self: always take more than one!), she is in fact concentrating on learning cursive. Cursive, for heaven's sake! Who would've guessed that one? She had been looking in my farm journal, trying to decipher some of the notes I'd made for myself in my own hybrid cursive print. Next thing I knew, she was wanting to know what the letters were in the word "goat," then more and more letters, until I'd written out the cursive alphabet for her, and she began writing a story in cursive. Translated: "The girl is annoying to her brothers."

Sam loves building and was dying to build a new catapult with the tools he got for his birthday. Together with their dad, Sam and Jules helped build a trebuchet, capable of launching significantly further than the bungie cord catapult they'd built about a year before. Using several items on hand--a dowel rod as a pivot and a weight from a set of dumbells--they built a trebuchet that was about a foot high and able to launch small items between 10 and 15 feet away. The kids had loads of fun playing with it until the dowel construction gave way; they now have plans for building a 4 foot model that will be significantly sturdier.

All the kids enjoy creating with legos, and Em's recently begun building diaramas that are totally cool. This particular scene involves camping in an RV, though she's made mermaids and space scenes as well. The kids' creativity and internal motivation always amazes me, as they learn and explore in ways I never could have predicted. Learning truly is everywhere!

Intro:

We are a family of five: myself, dh and our three children Emily 13, Julia 11, and Sam 10. We'll be sharing bits about our life as organic learners and welcome the opportunity to show others how rich life without school can be!

This blog is a chronicle of our learning adventures as well as a way to connect with family and other unschoolers.